This invention relates generally to roller skates. More particularly, this invention relates to a roller skate for an infant or child that includes a variety of features for helping the user learn to skate successfully and safely.
Roller skates have been widely sold and are well known in both the sporting goods and children""s toy industries. During recent years, many different types of roller skates have been developed having different functions and configurations. One particular type of skate is a xe2x80x9cbeginner""s skatexe2x80x9d that is intended for young children or other individuals who have not learned how to roller skate in a proficient manner. Most beginner""s skates include four or more wheels with at least two sets of parallel wheels, with one set located in the front portion of the skate and one set located in the back portion of the skate. By having the two front wheels rotate about one axis and the two rear wheels rotate about another axis, instead of having all of the wheels arranged to operate like an xe2x80x9cin line skatexe2x80x9d, the beginner""s skate provides the user with an additional amount of balance which can be especially important for an inexperienced skater.
While such conventional roller skates are known in the art, they include a number of shortcomings that can give rise to a number of problems for an inexperienced skater. For example, inexperienced skaters often have difficulty beginning the initial skating motion. When a skater is standing still, he or she must be able to propel themselves from a starting position. This can be extraordinarily difficult for a new skater who has yet to master the use of the skates in even the most fundamental manner. One prior art attempt to solve this problem involves the use of large rubber stoppers affixed to the front of the skate in front of the two front wheels. When a person desires to propel himself from a standing position, he lifts his heel forward, causing the rubber stopper to come into contact with the ground. The user is then able to push himself, using the rubber stopper, into a forward motion. This action, however, has a number of drawbacks. First, this action alone can require a higher degree of coordination than a new skater will often have, especially in the case of an infant or a young child. Second, a stopper made from a rubber or similar material will often become worn out over time, reducing its level of usefulness as time progresses. Third, many users, especially inexperienced users, will often attempt to use the rubber stoppers as a braking mechanism in the event that they are travelling at an excessive or uncontrollable velocity. The stopper, however, should not be used as a brake and, if used as such, can result in the skater falling over, resulting in potentially serious injuries. For these reasons, it has become desirable to develop an alternative structure for allowing a user to propel himself or herself from a standing position.
Additionally, conventional beginner""s skates have a number of other shortcomings. For example, it is often desirable to limit the direction of movement of the skate wheels, particularly when an infant or young child is first learning to skate. Many conventional beginner""s skates, however, include no method for limiting such movement. Additionally, the feet of young children often grow significantly during the first few years of the child""s life. For these reasons, a single sized skate is undesirable since a young child will quickly outgrow such a skate. For these reasons, it is desirable to have a skate that incorporates one of a variety of features that increases the safety to a user or the operational value of the skate itself.
A roller skate comprises a skate body and first and second front wheels coupled to the body. A front axle couples the front wheels to each other, and a spring is coupled to the skate body and is also biased by the front axle. A support member is coupled to the skate body and contacts the spring. The support member is adjustable such that the degree to which the front axle biases the spring can be modified. A tension adjuster is used to alter the position of the support member. In one embodiment of the invention, both the tension adjuster and the support member include a plurality of mating notches that provide means for changing the support member""s position. When a user places an increased force upon the front axle, the front axle biases the spring, making the front of the skate contact the ground and allowing the user to xe2x80x9ckickxe2x80x9d himself into a skating motion. The skate may also include a pawl and ratchet wheel combination that are used to prevent the backwards motion of one or more rear skate wheels. In another embodiment of the invention, the skate body includes front or back portions that can be separated to increase the size of the skate, enabling an optimum fit to a given user of the roller skate.
Further advantages and features of the present invention will be apparent from the following specification and claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts.